Bern Corporate & Capital Tax Rates
Last updated: 09 Dec 2025
Bern Corporate & Capital Tax Rates
How corporate profit and capital tax rates work in the Canton of Bern: the progressive cantonal profit tax for companies, the simple capital tax rate, the cantonal tax multiplier (Steueranlage), typical effective combined burdens (including federal tax), and tools to model the tax load for companies.
Overview
Companies in Bern pay a combination of:
- Cantonal/communal profit tax on taxable profit;
- Cantonal/communal capital tax on equity; and
- Direct federal corporate income tax on profit.
In contrast to some other cantons, Bern applies a progressive profit tax tariff for capital companies and cooperatives (Kapitalgesellschaften und Genossenschaften): lower rates on the first slices of profit and a higher simple rate on the remaining profit.
For both profit and capital tax, the canton defines simple rates. These are multiplied by:
- the cantonal tax multiplier (Steueranlage des Kantons), and
- the communal and church multipliers for the relevant municipality.
This page summarises the key parameters for capital companies and cooperatives and explains how to interpret them in practice when comparing Bern with other locations in Switzerland.
Statutory Cantonal Rates (Capital Companies & Cooperatives)
The following table summarises the core Bern cantonal profit and capital tax parameters for capital companies in recent years. The simple profit tax is progressive; the simple capital tax is proportional. Communal multipliers are set separately by each municipality.
| From / to | Simple profit tax tariff (capital companies) |
Simple capital tax rate (capital companies) |
Cantonal tax multiplier (Steueranlage, juristic persons) |
Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Until 31 Dec 2020 |
Progressive tariff on taxable profit: • 1.55% on 20% of taxable profit (with a minimum base amount); • 3.10% on the next profit slice; • 4.60% on the remaining profit. |
0.05‰ of taxable equity (simple capital tax). | 3.06 | Pre-reform regime: high cantonal tax multiplier and higher effective overall burden. Capital tax commonly described as around 3‰ in combined terms before the reform. |
| From 1 Jan 2021 | Same progressive profit tax tariff as above; the structure of the simple profit tax for capital companies remains unchanged. | 0.05‰ of taxable equity (unchanged) | 2.82 | Steuergesetzrevision and corporate tax reform (TRAF implementation): reduction of the cantonal tax multiplier for juristic persons to 2.82 units, lowering the cantonal component of both profit and capital tax. |
| From 1 Jan 2024 | Progressive profit tax tariff maintained; brackets and simple percentages as for the earlier regime but applied to the updated multipliers. | 0.05‰ of taxable equity (simple rate) | 2.62 | Further reduction of the cantonal tax multiplier for juristic persons by 0.2 units. In official communication, the reform is presented as a decrease of the effective capital tax burden from around 3‰ to about 0.5‰ at standard multipliers. |
The simple rates and the cantonal tax multiplier are set in the Bern tax act and in subsequent decisions on the tax strategy. Communal tax multipliers and church tax multipliers are determined annually by each municipality. For precise modelling, always confirm both the tax year and the company’s commune (e.g. City of Bern, Biel, Thun).
Effective Combined Tax Burden
Cantonal/communal + federal
The effective corporate income tax rate in Bern is the result of stacking:
- Bern cantonal and communal profit tax, including church tax where applicable; and
- Swiss direct federal corporate income tax at 8.5% on profit after tax (approx. 7.8% on profit before tax).
For a company located in the City of Bern, recent benchmarks show one of the highest ordinary corporate tax burdens in Switzerland. Maximum combined rates on profit before tax are around 20–21%, noticeably above the Swiss average of roughly 14–15%.
At the same time, the canton has materially reduced its capital tax burden in recent years: the effective combined capital tax for standard structures is now in the area of 0.5‰ of equity, down from about 3‰ before the reform, with capital tax largely creditable against profit tax in profitable years.
The actual effective rate for your company will depend on:
- Tax year (due to changes in the cantonal tax multiplier);
- Commune and church tax status (combined multipliers differ by municipality);
- Use of participation relief, patent box and R&D deductions; and
- Any special status or advance rulings (e.g. for research-intensive activities).
Illustrative example (City of Bern)
Assume a standard capital company in the City of Bern with:
- Taxable profit before tax: CHF 1,000,000;
- Taxable equity: CHF 2,000,000;
- No special regimes, participation relief or IP box; and
- Current cantonal, communal and church multipliers for the year.
Then, very roughly:
- The combined profit tax burden (Bern + federal) is in the low twenties as a percentage of profit before tax, with the canton frequently cited as having the highest ordinary corporate tax burden among Swiss cantons.
- The capital tax burden is modest relative to profit tax; for profitable companies the capital tax is often largely absorbed through crediting against profit tax.
For more precise numbers by year and commune, use:
- The official Bern company tax calculators and guidance, and
- This hub’s own Bern tax calculator (once configured with Bern parameters).
The values above are indicative only and do not replace a formal calculation or tax ruling. For location decisions, large investments or group structuring, always work with current year data, inter-cantonal comparisons and, where material, written confirmations or rulings.
Thresholds, Minimums & Special Statuses
Thresholds & de facto minimum burden
Bern does not apply a single flat minimum tax amount for all capital companies. Instead, tariff thresholds and minimum bases create a practical minimum burden:
- The progressive profit tax tariff includes a minimum base for the initial slice of profit, meaning very small profits are still taxed on a minimum amount once thresholds are reached.
- Capital tax is levied on taxable equity; for very small equity levels and unprofitable companies, the absolute amount of capital tax remains relatively low.
In practice, this means that start-ups or low-profit entities may be primarily exposed to capital tax and low profit tax, while larger and profitable entities bear most of the overall cantonal tax burden.
Special statuses & preferential regimes
Bern has implemented the federal corporate tax reform (TRAF) with tools designed to support research-intensive and IP-rich businesses. Key elements include:
- A patent box for qualifying IP income; and
- R&D super-deductions on qualifying expenditure.
Under favourable conditions, these instruments can substantially reduce the effective profit tax rate for qualifying structures, even though the ordinary rate remains high in comparison with other cantons.
For larger groups, advance tax rulings are widely used to:
- Confirm the scope of patent box and R&D benefits;
- Clarify the interaction with federal rules and Pillar 2 (OECD global minimum tax); and
- Provide certainty on the treatment of complex financing or IP structures.
Modelling Tools & Calculators
To quantify the tax burden for a specific company, it is best to use a combination of official and independent tools:
| Tool | What it does | How to use it for Bern |
|---|---|---|
| Bern company tax calculators | Compute cantonal/communal and federal tax for capital companies and cooperatives based on profit, equity and location, using Bern’s progressive tariff and tax multipliers. | Use the online calculators and guidance of the Bern tax administration. Select the relevant tax year and commune. Enter profit before tax and equity, and compare the resulting combined burden with your internal models. |
| Swiss federal tax calculator | Provides comparative views of corporate tax burdens across cantons and over time, including Bern and key competitor cantons. | Use it to benchmark Bern against alternative locations (e.g. Fribourg, Solothurn, Central Switzerland) for corporate location or expansion decisions. |
| TaxRep Bern calculator (this hub) | Applies Bern’s progressive profit tax tariff, capital tax parameters and the latest cantonal multipliers, together with federal tax, to your own profit and equity figures. | See the calculator page of this hub for a tailored company-level modelling tool aligned with the explanations in the Bern corporate and capital tax sections. |
Planning Considerations
| Theme | Rate impact | What to watch |
|---|---|---|
| Commune choice within Bern | Communal and church tax multipliers vary substantially between Bern municipalities. For the same cantonal framework, the total combined burden can differ noticeably. | Compare the combined multipliers (cantonal, communal and church) for relevant communes. Use calculators and inter-cantonal benchmarks when choosing or re-evaluating a domicile. |
| Financing structure | The mix of equity and debt affects capital tax (levied on equity) and profit tax via interest deductions, thin-cap rules and related-party financing. | Avoid excessive shareholder or intra-group debt that could be requalified as hidden equity. Coordinate Bern tax views with group treasury, transfer pricing and withholding tax aspects. |
| Use of TRAF instruments (R&D & patent box) | R&D deductions and the patent box can significantly lower the effective profit tax rate on qualifying income in an otherwise high-tax canton. | Check the Bern-specific implementation, caps and nexus requirements. Maintain robust documentation on qualifying activities, costs and income streams. |
| Holding, IP & regional hubs | Locating holding or IP-rich entities in Bern concentrates profit and equity in a comparatively high-tax canton, but may align with substance or workforce considerations. | Model scenarios including alternative cantons. For material structures, seek advance rulings to secure treatment and to understand potential Pillar 2 top-up effects. |
| Lifecycle events & restructurings | Mergers, spin-offs, migrations of seat and liquidations can trigger hidden reserves and temporarily change the effective tax burden. | Plan transactions taking Bern and federal practice into account, including deferral mechanisms, loss utilisation and the interaction of profit and capital tax. Obtain rulings for significant or novel transactions. |
FAQs
What is the corporate income tax rate in Bern?
Bern applies a progressive cantonal profit tax tariff for capital companies, with rates increasing over different profit slices and a top simple rate on the remaining profit. The simple tax is multiplied by the cantonal tax multiplier (Steueranlage) and by the relevant communal and church multipliers. On top of this, companies pay Swiss direct federal corporate income tax at 8.5% on profit after tax (about 7.8% before tax). For a standard company in the City of Bern, the combined ordinary rate on profit before tax is typically around 20–21%, making Bern one of the highest-tax cantons for companies.
What is the capital tax rate for companies in Bern?
The simple cantonal capital tax rate for capital companies is 0.05‰ of taxable equity. This simple rate is multiplied by the cantonal tax multiplier and by the relevant communal and church multipliers. In the context of recent reforms, the effective combined capital tax burden at standard multipliers is now around 0.5‰ of equity, a substantial reduction compared with the earlier level of about 3‰.
Is there a minimum tax for companies in Bern?
Bern does not levy a single flat minimum tax that applies identically to all capital companies. However, minimum bases and thresholds in the progressive profit tax tariff, combined with capital tax on equity, result in a practical minimum burden once certain profit or equity levels are reached. Very small, loss-making or asset-light companies may still face only modest cantonal and communal tax, but filing obligations typically remain.
Are the same rates used for all companies?
The statutory tariffs and simple rates are the same for capital companies and cooperatives, but the effective rate can differ significantly depending on factors such as the commune, the use of patent box and R&D deductions, participation relief and the overall profit level. Associations, foundations and entities with ideal or charitable purposes may be subject to separate tariffs or exemptions.
Where can I check the current year’s Bern rates and multipliers?
The most reliable sources are the official Bern tax administration (including the tax calculators and the annual overviews of cantonal and communal tax multipliers), plus the federal Swiss tax statistics and independent benchmarking reports. For material decisions or large investments, it is advisable to confirm the applicable multipliers in writing or via an advance tax ruling.
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